Historic Housecheck to cure headaches for listed building purchasers
Houses with a bit of history can prove a headache for purchasers if work, previously carried out, does not meet with the proper listed buildings consent.
So to speed up the process for anyone buying, selling or marketing a listed building, Wealden District Council has launched a new Historic Housecheck service which will provide a full report on any unauthorised works which do not meeting the building’s listing criteria. Where appropriate, it will also suggest what remedial action is necessary and highlight the practical implications of any potential remedies from a conservation standpoint.
“We treat our responsibility for Wealden’s 2,500 listed building very seriously,” said Councillor Jan Dunk, Cabinet member for Planning and Environment Protection.
“The Historic Housecheck service helps us monitor the state of our built heritage and provides a useful service to both the buyer and seller of listed property, speeding up the sales process and offering new residents peace of mind.”
Unfortunately it is all too common for problems to arise in the course of a property transaction when it emerges that work has been carried out to a listed property without the proper consent. Unlike some other development matters, unauthorised works to listed buildings do not become legitimate after the expiry of a period of time. They continue to constitute a criminal offence for which the perpetrators can be prosecuted.
Buyers of a listed property could be required to pay for remedial action to return the property to its former condition even when none of the harmful work has been carried out by them.
Given the problems which unauthorised work can create, Wealden’s Historic Housecheck offers a worthwhile opportunity for agents to clarify any questions about the condition of a listed building before the property is put on the market.
“The situation is often exacerbated by solicitors trying to hurry through checks in order to complete a house purchase in a matter of days,” said David Phillips, Head of Policy & Environment at Wealden District Council. “This unnecessary raising of expectations at very short notice can lead to disappointment for their clients.”
The listed building survey will provide information necessary for incorporation by estate agents in to Home Information Packs, which start being trialled for residential property next year. Home Information Packs, by which the Government aims to make house buying faster and more transparent, become compulsory in 2007.
Wealden is already the busiest planning authority in East Sussex and one of the busiest in England. A fee to cover costs will be charged to ensure the service does not put any additional burden on council tax payers and existing planning workloads. It will prove a far more efficient and cost-effective way of providing proper care for historic property in Wealden than by relying on Conservation Officers to provide purchasers with informal advice and free site visits when busy schedules allow.
Agents and owners will be free to engage their own property professionals to carry out a survey of work done to listed buildings if they wish.
Note to Editors:
A fee of £80 will be charged for the first hour for any investigation of previous building work carried out to a Wealden listed building, followed by £40 for each subsequent hour. The fee will be used to employ special consultants who will carry out the survey to meet the district council’s criteria. The overall time involved will depend on the size and complexity of the property but the Council anticipates that only the most problematical cases will require more than a day’s work.
